


While you were gone

by TallHooman



Series: While you were gone [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Canon Divergence, Death, Doctors, F/F, Hospitals, Inspired by Charité at War, It gets dark, M/M, Mentions of Rape, Multi, Season 8 can suck it, Set during season 7, War, just mentions, not much, some gore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-07-20
Packaged: 2020-05-16 13:26:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19319122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TallHooman/pseuds/TallHooman
Summary: ” Oh my God!”This exclamation was swiftly followed by the sound of a Garrison-issued tablet dropping to the floor.Rachel looked up from the petri dish she had been swabbing bacteria on, placing it down on the table, and covered it, lest it get contaminated.” What’s up, Anya?”The girl in question picked up the tablet from the floor and shoved it under Rachel’s nose. Rachel took a few steps back before reading the email in front of her.” Oh my god.”” I never thought that this would have happened at a military school! Those poor kids! They were in your year, right?”Rachel turned back to her petri dish, still trying to process the news.”That was my brother.”Rachel never expected her brother to go missing; she sure as hell did not expect to end up on the front line on the same alien war he was fighting. And she really didn't expect that she'd end up almost dying multiple times in the process.In which Lance's twin sister, Rachel, is a Garrison pupil training to be a doctor, and get's caught up in an intergalactic war in the process.





	1. Years 2082-2085

**Author's Note:**

> This work was inspired by a German drama called Charité at War. I always felt like the Voltron universe left room for a lot of development, and I was really curious on how other parts of the world got on during season 7. I also felt that the Garrison, as a major part of the military, couldn't just have had a space programme, so I made them have a biology programme as well, in which students either were trained in medicine or research.

_Garrison Military Complex- 2082_

_Two years after the events at Kerberos_

_Three days after the disappearance of four cadets and Takashi Shirogane_

_Two years before the Galra invasion_

” Oh my God!”

This exclamation was swiftly followed by the sound of a Garrison-issued tablet dropping to the floor.

Rachel looked up from the petri dish she had been swabbing bacteria on, placing it down on the table, and covered it, lest it get contaminated.

” What’s up, Anya?”

The girl in question picked up the tablet from the floor and shoved it under Rachel’s nose. Rachel took a few steps back before reading the email in front of her.

” Oh my god.”

” I never thought that this would have happened at a military school! Those poor kids! They were in your year, right?”

Rachel turned back to her petri dish, still trying to process the news.

”That was my brother.”

”What?”

” Lance was my brother.”

She blinked back tears, wondering why the hell she found about her brother’s disappearance from an e-mail sent around to the whole Garrison. She placed her inoculating loop in the flame of a Bunsen Burner and watched numbly as it started to glow red.

” Let’s hope they turn up soon enough.” Anya started preparing some blood agar for the _enterococcus faecalis_ , before turning towards Rachel. She placed an awkward hand on her shoulder.” You sure you’re ready for your hospital time? Burns might be a bit of a dragon, but I’m sure he’ll let you off for a few days; your brother just disappeared. Honestly, I’m confused about why you weren’t told before.”

Rachel cooled off the loop on a patch of agar before dipping it in a retrovirus solution.

” I’ll be fine.” She promised, before returning to her petri dish. She really needed to take her mind of things.

_Garrison Military Complex- 2083_

_Two years and six months since the events at Kerberos_

_Six months after the disappearance of four cadets and Takashi Shirogane_

_One year and six months before the Galra invasion_

” All medical staff to Bay 1-A-I! I repeat, all medical staff to Bay 1-A-I!”

Rachel looked up from the overflowing pile of lab results on her desk.

” Does that mean us as well? I mean, we graduated, like, two weeks ago.”

Anya put down her pen, sighing, and placed her head in her hands.

” I guess, if they’re using the comms instead of sending us an e-mail. Better see what’s happening, before Burns makes us regret ever enrolling in the biology programme in the first place. Seriously, if someone had told me that biology was so stressful, I would have switched to the weapons or space programme when I still had the chance.”

Rachel chuckled before pulling Anya up to face her. ” Hey, if you move out of this programme, then I’m following you out.”

Anya blushed at that.

Huh.

Interesting.

” Well we… err … we better get going,” she fumbled as she started to leave the room.

                    ***************************************************************************************************************************

‘What the actual hell’ thought Rachel, as she laid her eyes on some kind of spacecraft- it looked far more advanced than anything the Garrison had.

Looked like aliens were real after all.

Soldiers surrounded the vehicle, in regular formation, with medical staff covered head to toe in hazmat suits. This was an alien device; god knows what pathogens could be hiding there, ready to destroy humankind.

Okay, maybe that was a slight exaggeration.

But still, better to be safe than sorry, right?

The vehicle’s doors slid open.

A man came out.

He looked rather weary; not too bad off, though slightly malnourished. Not in a he’s-been-starved kind of way; more like the food he was eating didn’t possess all the nutrients needed. There were however signs of past physical trauma. He was dressed in foreign clothes; they looked like a hybrid of a kind of saree and cloak.

Their instructions had been clear; tranquilise the man and keep him in quarantine until all was clear. The last time this had been necessary had been when Takashi Shirogane had crash-landed on Earth; and that ended up with four teenagers going missing.

Hopefully this had a better outcome.

Two soldiers grabbed the man, trying to restrain his flying limbs as he protested at the rough treatment.

” No! Don’t put me under! Please!” The soldiers started to drag the man towards the crowd of medical staff at the ready.

Wait.

They were dragging him towards her.

Fuck her life- her first major event in the field involved in _tranquilising_ someone.

Rachel put down her syringe full of tranquiliser and approached him with empty hands held above her head, making sure to approach him from the front; she didn’t want this panic attack to get too out of hand.

” Hey, hey, it’s okay! We’re not going to hurt you; you’ve just arrived in a strange vehicle and we need to make sure you’re okay. Can you tell me your name?”

” Samuel Holt. I need to talk to Admiral Sanda. There’s a…”

Rachel’s eyes widened as soon as soon as she heard the man’s name. Samuel Holt, as in the same Holt who went missing over two years ago on the Kerberos mission? Did he have any information about her brother?

Well someone better tell them the damn truth about what the hell happened.

She placed her hands on Holt’s shoulders while subtly giving the signal to tranquilise him. ” We’ll make sure you can talk to the admiral soon enough, but first we’ve got to go check that you’re alright, okay? You’ve obviously had a long journey.” He seemed to relax at that, allowing his guard to drop right before someone stuck a needle into his arm.

_One week later_

So, what Rachel had gathered form this highly important meeting was that aliens were going to invade Earth in the near future.

Aliens that were basically evil purple furries.

That had somehow amassed an empire.

And that humankind better get their asses in gear if they didn’t want to get enslaved.

And that Lance was _alive_.

And honestly? That was a lot to process.

She couldn’t believe it; her twin brother, who had been presumed dead for six months, was alive and well, fighting purple furries in a big cat-ship in space.

Damn.

Rachel was still processing the absolute shitload of information they had been given during the meeting three hours, while she was walking to Anya’s room.

She knocked on the door, waiting to be let in. There was no answer. That was unlike her- Anya was usually quick to answer her door.

Rachel knocked again.

A few awkward minutes passed before a muffled voice called out. ”It’s open.”

Hesitantly, Rachel pushed open the door, cringing as it creaked.

” Anya? You alright?” Her eyes fell on a shaking lump on a bed, hiding under the covers.

” Anya! What’s wrong? Shh… It’s okay. I’m here.”

She pulled her in for as hug from the back and rest her head on her shoulder.

” I know, it’s… it’s a lot to take in, and it’s overwhelming. But I’m here, and I’ll always be here for you.” Anya relaxed in her arms, and they lay like that all night.

_Garrison Military Complex- 2084_

_Three years since the events at Kerberos_

_One year after the disappearance of four cadets_ _and Takashi Shirogane_

_One year before the Galra invasion_

Honestly, Rachel never expected that humankind would go through basically what could be called a second Industrial Revolution; the pace at which human technology was unprecedented.

While integration with Altean technology had greatly improved weapons and industry, progress in the medical sector had been slower. Altean healing pods sounded like a miracle, but it was hard to reproduce on Earth- they needed Balmera crystals as a power source, and their limited supply tended to be reserved for more military purposes. However, within the treasure trove of information that Holt had brought to Earth from space, there had been information on more advanced ways to control infections, especially those caused by viruses, and they had gained insight on the alien biology of many species, including the Galra. This meant that not only could they treat alien species if need be (for example, if they needed to treat alien allies or even if they needed to treat the enemy- international law stated that doctors should not violate medical neutrality; Rachel still wondered if that applied to those of extra-terrestrial origin).

The progress made was awe-inspiring but made Rachel fear even more for the inevitable invasion of Earth, and how they would stand against the Galra.

_Garrison Military Complex- 2085_

_Four years since the events at Kerberos_

_Two years after the disappearance of four cadets and Takashi Shirogane_

_The hours after the first attack made on Earth._

” Trauma to the head, torso, and right leg. Possibility of broken or fractured bones and probable internal bleeding. Order an x-ray, an MRI and a sonogram. We need to check for shrapnel.”

The first wave of casualties of the Galra attack had come rolling in; Admiral Sanda had made the idiotic decision to send the least fleets out first, and those poor pilots had payed the price. Most of them had died on the spot, with very few making it to the hospital alive.

The ground shook with each incoming attack on Earth. Would it be bad if Rachel felt impressed by the sheer technological capabilities of the Galra? Earth had little chance against them; even if the Garrison could hold out, the rest of the planet was defenceless, with the only weaponry available able to damage the Galra being nuclear weapons. The use of these were banned by international law after the Third World War, however; the planet was still trying to recover from the effects now, almost half a century later.

The hospital was flooded; in addition to wounded pilots coming in, they were treating civilians as well; the nearby cities were being attacked as well, and many other hospitals had either been destroyed or damaged or were overflowing.

Rachel focused on the man coming in on the stretcher. He wore a pilot’s uniform and looked like he had just been fighting; there were multiple wounds to the torso, and it looked like the paramedics had had to amputate on the scene; he had lost a leg. It also looked like the anaesthesia given before was wearing off; the man was gaining consciousness.

” I need a sonogram now.” Rachel called out to a nearby nurse. ” He’s going to need to be operated on as soon as possible before he loses too much blood from that chest wound.”

Rachel turned to the man. ”Sir, can you hear me? I need to know your name. Can you talk? Don’t worry, you’ll be back on anaesthesia soon enough.”

The man groaned and mumbled something under his breath.

”Sorry, sir, you’re going to have to be a bit louder.”

He coughed a little. ” Adam Walsingham”

”Thanks Adam. We’re going to put you under now, okay?”

Rachel let the anaesthesiologist do their thing, before looking around and taking in the chaos of the hospital. At this rate they were going to run out of supplies in no time.


	2. Years 2086-2087

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Earth is most definitely losing, and the whole Mcclain family is in mourning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so none of this is canon, but oh well.

_Garrison Military Complex- 2086_

_Five years after the events at Kerberos_

_Three years after the disappearance of four cadets and Takashi Shirogane_

_One year since the Galra invasion_

It was strangely quiet. After having heavy artillery bombarded upon them for the past few days, the previously normal silence of the night seemed weird. Rachel sighed and looked at what was now the last few free square kilometres of unoccupied land on Earth. The entire world had been taken over by the Galra; only the Garrison held strong against the alien threat.

War seemed to be taking a toll on everyone- most people at the Garrison had family across the world. Hell, she was one of the lucky ones; her family was safe within the Garrison. Rachel had been worrying about them for ages, but at least back then she still had Veronica; when the MFEs came back from their supply mission down a woman, Rachel had assumed the worst- after all, how likely was it that one person could have survived against a swarm of Galra bots? But then, a month later, Veronica came back alive, and well, even. And she had brought back their whole family.

Well, not their whole family. Abuelita didn’t make it; she had died just a few weeks prior to the invasion, and honestly Rachel felt glad that she died at the time she had. There was no way that she could have survived the strain of an invasion.

And then there was Lance.

Rachel had to accept the fact that he was dead and move on; no one had seen Voltron in a while, and the last she heard was that they were fighting some alien prince gone mad. There was little chance that Lance had survived that fight.

She got out her tablet (the same tablet from which she had read the e-mail detailing her brother’s disappearance three years ago) and played the video Lance had recording for his family for what could have been the thousandth time, smiling as he started off the video.

_Hey, mama, papa, Abuelita, Luis, Marco, Veronica, Raquel…._

_Garrison Military Complex- 2087_

_Six years after the events at Kerberos_

_Four years after the disappearance of four cadets and Takashi Shirogane_

_Two years since the Galra invasion_

They were losing.

By what really seemed like some kind of divine intervention (like seriously, this war was making a staunch atheist like Rachel consider the possibility of a higher power), the Garrison still hadn’t fallen yet, but it was only a matter of time before it did. And they were running out of supplies fast, especially in the hospitals. They were running out of sterile equipment and painkillers; the number of refugees entering their compound seemed to increase every week, and with them came the need for medical supplies to treat their injuries.

”Hey.” Rachel was forced out of her thoughts by a gentle voice and a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Anya, who was smiling softly at her.

”We’re needed in the control room.”

Rachel got up from where she had been sitting and followed Anya without a word. She didn’t bother with trying to figure out what they were being called for; every single meeting they attended ended up being the same thing; the whole we’re-running-out-of-supplies-and have-no-solution spiel. It was kinda getting boring now. Both girls entered the meeting room and sat down at their respective seats, with Rachel discreetly waving at Veronica, who was standing next to the presentation holo. One of the commanders (she didn’t know their names; they all looked the same) started droning on about their lack of supplies. Rachel turned off as soon as she started.

”… we need some medical staff to go on a supplies mission.”

_What?_

Commander Burns seemed to react similarly. ”Are you sure? We need all medical personnel ready at all times.”

”We’ll only need two, to identify the equipment needed. It won’t be a long mission either- just to the nearest storehouse we have. You’ll use the underground route, and there shouldn’t be any Galra present. Any volunteers?”

The room fell silent for a solid minute.

Rachel tentatively put her hand up. ”I’ll go.”

Veronica gave her a patented older sister warning glance. ”Rachel-”

”No, it’s fine, Vero. It’s not dangerous, and frankly, cabin fever’s setting in here.”

The commander put her hand up to shush them. ” Anyone else?”

”I’ll do it.” Rachel turned around to face Anya. ”What- no- don’t put yourself in danger because of me!”

”I’m doing this of my own free will. I’m coming with you.”

The commander clapped her hands together. ”Right. Both of you, meet with the rest of your crew tomorrow at 2000 hours.”

_Twenty-eight hours later- in a railroad track leading to an underground store house._

 The entire crew sat in an awkward silence- Rachel, Anya, two of the MFEs (the smart one and the quiet one), and two drivers.

”When will we get there?”

”In around half an hour”

Rachel couldn’t stand the silence any longer. Subconsciously, she started humming under her breath.

_I’m coming wait for me_

_I hear the walls repeating_

_The falling of our feet, and it sounds like drumming._

_And we are not alone_

_I hear the rocks and stones_

_Echoing our song_

_I’m coming._

”What’s that song?” Rachel was broken out of her reverie by Anya’s voice.

”Huh?”

”What song were you humming?”

7” Oh! It’s and old song, from a musical called Hadestown? It’s based on the myth of Orpheus and Euridice. ”

”Ah.”

”Lance used to like it. I guess he liked the idea of someone who loved him so much that they’d go to the Underworld for him.”

Half an hour slowly went by, and they finally had arrived at their destination. They quickly set to work, loading supplies into their vehicle.

”Grab that, it looks like morphine- oh and grab that box, we really need sterile surgical equipment..”

They quickly finished loading the much needed supplies onto their vehicle.

”Everyone done?” asked the smart MFE. ”We'll leave now then, before our position can be detected.”

_Bam!_

”Everyone, get inside! I'll hold them off! There's not too many!”

Okay, that was a bit of an understatement. There were Galra sentries swarming in by the second- there was no way Rachel would be able to keep for long.

”Go! Get out while you can! Anya,  _get inside!”_

Rachel felt something hit her back.

A sharp pain blossoming.

She heard the sound of voices arguing.

The sound of a retreating car.

And then- and then everything went dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song mentioned is Wait for me (reprise) from Hadestown. I figured a romantic like Lance would enjoy it.


End file.
